Uh oh, the risks of using someone else’s platform!

You might remember that I launched some courses on the Udemy platform last year. I created online versions of my Marketing Planning, Pricing and Target Market workshops and have had some modest success with them.

Udemy recently announced that they are changing their pricing model to restrict the prices that can be charged for courses in their marketplace. Fortunately, I had kept my courses on the shorter side and so the top end limit of $50 won’t impact me. They are also restricting the discounts so that courses won’t be sold for less than $10. This strategy will likely build longer-term profits for Udemy and their instructors but is a disruption for some.

This is a good example of the pros and cons of using someone else’s platform for your content. On the one hand, Udemy now has 10 million students on their platform and actively markets to them. On the other hand, I no longer have full control of my pricing and promotional efforts. Udemy also continuously invests in improving the platform for instructors and students and it would cost thousands of dollars to replicate their efforts.

I generally recommend that solopreneurs and small businesses leverage the work of SAAS (software as a service) providers like Udemy, Eventbrite, Mailchimp, etc. because you get so much more than one individual or small business can afford. I will still recommend Udemy- but I’ll also suggest that clients keep their courses short and sweet so that they fit under the $50 limit.